Mick Barry (Cork North Central, Solidarity) | Oireachtas source

I looked at some of those 118 submissions to the public consultation in November and December. There seemed to be a high level of resistance from employers to the concept of any kind of real fund. I will give an example of some of the correspondence submitted. One employer stated that the rate of pay should be the current illness benefit and then topped up by the employer if they so wish. Another wrote that there should be an earnings threshold as employers will not want to pay sick leave for part-time, seasonal and temporary employees. A third one commented that having a waiting period makes sense as it will prevent people calling in sick on a whim. I sincerely hope that the Minister is not aiming to split the difference between a real sick pay scheme and these kinds of backward 19th century attitudes. I ask him to assure the House that is what we are talking about here is a mandatory employer sick pay scheme at 100% of wages for all workers, which is what a proper scheme would involve.

See this speech in context